Help me choose! Emerald Dawn or Viking Freya?

[familymum]

  

We are an active couple in our mid fifties. This will be our first river cruise. We have cruised on Celebrity, NCL, Carnival and Princess.

We are looking at a Rhine river cruise, Amsterdam to Basel.( We plan to add additional time at both ends of the cruise.) I have it narrowed to two options. Oct 5th Emerald Dawn or October 15th  Viking Freya? 

 Thoughts?

Your insights are much appreciated!

[Michelle McLean]

we are doing this cruise In August and chose Emerald cruises as it seems more active (viking doesn't have any ebikes) also has a pool to cool off in.  We have done a viking ocean cruise and it was fantastic so it as a hard call to make.

Edited March 1 by Michelle McLean

[familymum]

3 hours ago, Michelle McLean said:

we are doing this cruise In August and chose Emerald cruises as it seems more active (viking doesn't have any ebikes) also has a pool to cool off in.  We have done a viking ocean cruise and it was fantastic so it as a hard call to make.

Thanks for answering. I'm not sure that the pool will be a big draw for an October sailing. I think that the demographic is younger on the Emerald, but honestly not too fussed about the ages of our fellow passengers. The Emerald is 500$ pp lower than the Viking ( 1000$ lower if I compare it with the Viking Oct 5th sailing) , plus it includes gratuities. However, my TA had a client who had a bad experience on an Emerald  sailing, and is now hesitant to recommend  them. Apparently the river level was low, as it sometimes is, but there was mishandling of the passengers were transferred to the next leg of their journey.  Based on that, she is recommending Viking (or Avalon, but price is even higher). Part of me  thinks I  am using a TA to avoid problems but another part of me thinks one incident isn't enough to write Emerald off as a possibility.  Both companies seems to have both good and bad(ish) reviews.

[Host Jazzbeau]

In the event of extreme low water, Viking does seem to have the best options [because they have so many ships everywhere on the river] – but in moderate low water Viking has the most problems because for whatever reason they stop sailing before the other lines.  And they aren't so good in high water either.

 

Emerald (and Scenic, its owner) has had troubling reports about how they handle sudden problems.  But I can report from two Scenic river cruises that when things go well they are terrific.  Make sure you buy good third-party travel insurance, and if things go pear shape you will be able to make lemonade and your insurance will reimburse the costs.

[Canal archive]

Scenic boats are amongst the shallowest draughted  on the rivers and conversely Viking amongst the deepest and carry more passengers but I wouldn’t be surprised if their next ten due this year are shallower.

[Nippy Sweetie]

We've always found that Viking really looks after passengers really well if something goes wrong. We greatly appreciated Viking's wraparound care when diagnosed with COVID on a French river cruise. Happy to pay more for such  quality.

Edited March 1 by Nippy Sweetie

[pontac]

It's not clear if you're asking about the merits of the two boats, or the cruise lines.  For either you'd only get a definitive answer from someone who'd  been on both, and so far that doesn't seem to be the case, and some repliers have been on neither.

 

I've cruised with Viking and Scenic (Emerald's sister line). I've cruised Basel>Amsterdam twice with Viking and I'm booked to cruise Amsterdam to Basel with Scenic in August.

 

Water levels can impact cruising, too low and there's not enough draught, too high and there's not enough clearance under bridges. Viking (and no doubt others) can adjust their draft by pumping out ballast.

 

Luckily (touch wood) I've not encountered these problems on the 13 cruises I've done so far. Viking have a lot of boats on this route, not all will show on the website you use, just as your departure doesn't show on the UK site. Posts from others have shown that when a bridge or part of the rive is unnavigable Viking swap passengers with another boat going the opposite direction and that boat then turns round and you continue the cruise. As boats are identical you stay in identical cabin.

 

But I think your decision should be based on the cost, facilities offered by each line and advice from the travel agent you've chosen, and  just hope the river gods are smiling when you travel. 

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[Coral]

I haven't been on either - just wanted to let you know that Viking will most likely make you pay the entire cost when you book and Emerald is most likely 90 days out (outside of deposit). Viking's final payment terms is different than most cruise lines.

 

I know Viking will move you from boat to boat with low river levels. They tout this has a benefit. I have a friend who switched ships 3x over an 8 night cruise and absolutely hated the trip as they felt like they spend too much time packing and unpacking. For some reason, this also reduced time in port and I don't remember why. So while they tout this as a benefit - not everyone considers this a benefit.

[familymum]

8 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

In the event of extreme low water, Viking does seem to have the best options [because they have so many ships everywhere on the river] – but in moderate low water Viking has the most problems because for whatever reason they stop sailing before the other lines.  And they aren't so good in high water either.

 

Emerald (and Scenic, its owner) has had troubling reports about how they handle sudden problems.  But I can report from two Scenic river cruises that when things go well they are terrific.  Make sure you buy good third-party travel insurance, and if things go pear shape you will be able to make lemonade and your insurance will reimburse the costs.

Thank you, this is helpful.   In the case of  problematic river levels, I can see  how switching boats is less of a headache than being bused farther up the coast.

[familymum]

3 hours ago, Nippy Sweetie said:

We've always found that Viking really looks after passengers really well if something goes wrong. We greatly appreciated Viking's wraparound care when diagnosed with COVID on a French river cruise. Happy to pay more for such  quality.

Glad to hear that you  Viking looked after you well when you fell ill. I agree that sometimes the lowest price can be a false savings. Price is important, as I can spend the saved funds on the next vacation😄 but I do want a quality experience. New to this type of cruising, I find it hard to evaluate the offers,  to an untrained eye, there seems to be more similarities than differences. That is why I appreciate you taking the time to answer.

[sharkster77]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

I haven't been on either - just wanted to let you know that Viking will most likely make you pay the entire cost when you book and Emerald is most likely 90 days out (outside of deposit). Viking's final payment terms is different than most cruise lines.

 

I know Viking will move you from boat to boat with low river levels. They tout this has a benefit. I have a friend who switched ships 3x over an 8 night cruise and absolutely hated the trip as they felt like they spend too much time packing and unpacking. For some reason, this also reduced time in port and I don't remember why. So while they tout this as a benefit - not everyone considers this a benefit.

The flip side of your friend's displeasure with ship swaps is that many complain if their river cruise becomes a bus trip if they are removed from a ship and never put back on one, being shuttled from hotel to hotel.  Six of one, half dozen of the other, as my MIL used to say.

[familymum]

1 hour ago, pontac said:

It's not clear if you're asking about the merits of the two boats, or the cruise lines. 

Hi, thanks for answering. I am happy for any insight that someone is willing to share.😀

If there is a reason why one of the boats is superior than the other then I would love to know that, however I think  the cruise line has more impact on the experience than the particular boat.

 

 I wis break down what I am wavering between the two options.

 

Weather/timing

 

 I know that weather is always a big mystery.  The dawn sailing is 10 days earlier than the Freya- so perhaps that increases the probability of warmer weather.

The Freya is Tuesday to Tuesday while the Dawn is Saturday to Saturday. As we wish to add a few days before in Amsterdam and  about 5 days after in Switzerland, the mid week sailing makes it easier to accomplish this as we can take a straight  2 calendar weeks off as vacation leave. 

 

Cruise line experience

 

Does one line have better excursions (or more choices)?

Better food and wine quality?

overall experience between the two lines?

Preference over where the boats dock along the way?

Better handling of low or high water levels?

 

I too hope that I will be lucky like you, and that the river gods will smile on us.☺️ It is nice to read that you have had 13 river cruises without experiencing water level problems, it gives me hope. Also, if you  are about to do this route for the third time then I assume that you have enjoyed these stops.

 

Thanks for  your input!

 

 

 

 

 

[familymum]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

I haven't been on either - just wanted to let you know that Viking will most likely make you pay the entire cost when you book and Emerald is most likely 90 days out (outside of deposit). Viking's final payment terms is different than most cruise lines.

 

I know Viking will move you from boat to boat with low river levels. They tout this has a benefit. I have a friend who switched ships 3x over an 8 night cruise and absolutely hated the trip as they felt like they spend too much time packing and unpacking. For some reason, this also reduced time in port and I don't remember why. So while they tout this as a benefit - not everyone considers this a benefit.

Thank you for answering.

We are Canadian.  Currently Emerald requires full payment within 7 days and Viking requires full payment by March 31.  That's only a couple of weeks different so not a big determinant here.

 

Concerning Moving boat to boat. I can imagine that if the water level is problematic that it will likely be problematic at several points along the river. I do think that I would rather transfer boats then end up on a bus. perhaps, I wouldn't completely unpack after we have already transferred once.

[familymum]

21 minutes ago, sharkster77 said:

The flip side of your friend's displeasure with ship swaps is that many complain if their river cruise becomes a bus trip if they are removed from a ship and never put back on one, being shuttled from hotel to hotel.  Six of one, half dozen of the other, as my MIL used to say.

 This is my main hesitation with the Emerald sailing.  On ocean sailings, the captain can adapt the ships course if conditions are not great, not so on the Rhine.  At least with switching boats we are still on the river. If I want a land tour there are better and less costly ways to do so.

[Roz]

Let me simplify your decision for you.  You've never been on a river cruise.  Based on the responses so far,  I'm not seeing significant differences between your 2 choices.  Just pick one and go with it. 😀

 

After your return, evaluate what you liked and didn't like about the line and ship you chose.  Use this information when booking your 2nd river cruise. 

[pontac]

Again - only someone who has experienced both lines can really answer your questions,  @familymum

 

An experience of past voyages are not necessarily what is on offer now, as ports, excursions, food and drinks can and do change.

 

My first river cruise was chosen by our friends and I did no research and knew nothing about cruising. They'd chosen Viking and we were completely satisfied with them, so our subsequent cruises have also been with them.

 

But there are now many river cruise lines competing for your money so there's a lot of choice. I expect if you enjoy your first experience then you'll book another cruise with the same line.

 

What I enjoy most is being looked after, not having to choose meals in advance, buy the ingredients, then cook them and clean  up afterwards. I can just walk into the dining room and choose what I want from the menu and if nothing takes my fancy have steak & chips.

 

Excursions occupy the days, but they're not the main point for us.

 

On food and wine quality, that's very subjective, and as I've said I've not cruised with Emerald but I have with Scenic and Emerald are a less expensive sister line. I rate Viking and Scenic the same for food and Viking better for wine. In UK bookings Viking include the drinks package & gratuities. Remember that with Viking you can bring your own wines on board to have with meals & anywhere, so you can buy at wineries and wine shops. According to the Emerald site you can bring your own drinks on-board for room consumption only.

 

You might like to read my trip reports, linked to in my signature below. These will give an idea on the experiences we've had. (I understand that the signature doesn't display on a phone, in that case ask & I'll give the links)

[Roz]

@pontac makes an excellent point. 

 

My first river cruise was on Uniworld.  I ran into my TA in my local grocery store's produce dept. 🍇🍅🥦🍍🍉.  She had just come back from a Uniworld cruise and raved about it.  Based on what she knew about my likes and dislikes, she said she thought it would be perfect for a solo female interested in history and culture.  

 

I went home, looked at Uniworld's itineraries online, and picked one.  I called her the following Monday and booked it.  Didn't check out any other lines.  Took 2 more cruises with Uniworld, then did 3 cruises with Tauck.  She told me if I liked Uniworld and its inclusions and solo pricing, I would more than likely enjoy Tauck.

 

[familymum]

1 hour ago, Roz said:

Let me simplify your decision for you.  You've never been on a river cruise.  Based on the responses so far,  I'm not seeing significant differences between your 2 choices.  Just pick one and go with it. 😀

 

After your return, evaluate what you liked and didn't like about the line and ship you chose.  Use this information when booking your 2nd river cruise. 

Mmm, true. However these boards would be awfully quiet without people asking and answering questions.

[notamermaid]

17 hours ago, familymum said:

I have it narrowed to two options. Oct 5th Emerald Dawn or October 15th  Viking Freya? 

Not an easy decision. I agree that a direct comparison from someone who has sailed both lines would be best. I have sailed on neither so just a couple of quick thoughts from me. Daylight between your two dates is not a consideration, they are so close, and daylight saving time only ends on the last Sunday in October. Sunday closure of shops or Monday closure of museums may be a consideration if you are looking at a specific experience/excursion. You have already had responses as regards river levels. Last point from me: autumn foliage. That is more pronounced at the later date.

 

Have fun planning.

 

notamermaid

 

[familymum]

Thank you @pontac.   I was simply looking for information that might help  tip the balance one way or the other. I feel reassured that either would be fine, but I have asked my TA to put a hold on the Viking sailing and I suspect that we will finalize that choice. Your comments spoke to me and tipped the balance towards Viking.   I appreciate a good wine list. lol. and the ability to bring some wine on board is a nice feature.  I also think that in the unfortunate situation that the river level is troublesome I would prefer to switch boats than find myself on a bus. Ultimately it is the timing that works the best for us for adding before and after stays. Some friends of mine took a Rhine Viking cruise last year and thoroughly enjoyed it, which is what prompted us to look at a river cruise. Thanks again for your insight.

[familymum]

8 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

 Last point from me: autumn foliage. That is more pronounced at the later date.

 

Have fun planning.

 

notamermaid

 

 Yes, I hope so! That is what we have selected.🍁🍂

[gnome12]

46 minutes ago, familymum said:

the ability to bring some wine on board is a nice feature.

That is true of every river cruise line as far as I know.

[pontac]

3 hours ago, gnome12 said:

That is true of every river cruise line as far as I know.

 

Here the question is concerning only two cruise lines; Viking and Emerald. While both allow people to bring alcohol on board they have different attitudes to it.

 

Viking's FAQs say:

Can I bring alcoholic and other beverages on board?

Guests may bring alcohol and beverages with them or purchase alcohol ashore at destinations that sell alcohol. Alcohol can be consumed in the guest’s stateroom or in public spaces, including dining venues. There is no corkage fee.

 

Emerald's FAQs say:

Can I bring my own alcohol on board? 

 

We have no problem with guests purchasing alcohol for consumption in their rooms. However, we do ask that personal drinks are not consumed in the communal areas of our Star-Ships and luxury yachts.

[Coral]

Why is it only those of us in the US have weird payment arrangements for Viking?

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

Why is it only those of us in the US have weird payment arrangements for Viking?

Because other countries don’t allow it. (I think Viking’s US policies also apply in Canada, but I’m not sure.)